As the longboard market continues its explosive growth, more and more retailers are beginning to cater to the demands of a consumer demographic that is looking for bigger boards. TransWorld Business had the chance to check in with several retailers while in New York City last week, and stumbled across Longboard Loft in Manhattan?s lower east side. Co-Managers Rob Perry and Jeff Vyain were on hand to take us on a quick tour of the shop and explain their perspective on the longboard market and what?s happening with the skate community in their neighborhood.
When did the shop open?
Longboard Loft opened in its current Manhattan location April 1st of this year.
How many square feet?
Right now it?s checking in at about 750 square feet but we plan to open things up and expand it to about 1250 square feet very soon.
How many shop kids and managers do you have?
We?ve got two managers-Jeff and Phil-and an official sales/service team of about six? to eight guys and gals. The shop kids are harder to count-but there are never a shortage of opinions if you?re looking to tweak your bushing setup. They?re not shy about offering their advice!
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What sets Longboard Loft apart from other action sports retailers in the area?
From the beginning the concept of Longboard Loft was to create a full-on, full-service longboard shop in NYC that could service riders of all skill levels and disciplines. That means carrying the largest assortment of boards, wheels, trucks and components in the area. A lot of the specialty products we carry can?t be found anywhere else in NYC. On top of that, we?ve got a ton of demo boards, hand-printed one of a kind Bustin Boards decks and a helpful and knowledgeable crew who can make recommendations and tweak setups. It?s all about customization and personalization of your ride-technically and aesthetically.
How is the skate community different in NY as opposed to the West Coast?
I think skaters are skaters, wherever you go. I don?t see a big difference in the people. The terrain might be a little different-but when we?re out on the West Coast we meet up with a crew out there and they?ll show us around. When they come here we do the same. There?s a certain level of respect there, from what I can see.
What are your overall thoughts on the recent growth of the longboard market and where do you see things moving in the near future?
Longboarding has truly taken off over the last 18 months and we don?t see it slowing up anytime soon. If anything, we?re seeing the crowd get younger and younger which just indicates to us that those kids are going to grow up on a board and hopefully will ride one for life. It?s a sport that can be as challenging as you want to make it but is also accessible to the casual rider-there?s a lot of room from growth both here and internationally.
What retail lessons have you learned from helping to grow the shop?
Inventory management is always a challenge and just trying to find space for all the great new products coming to market. With the expansion of longboard skateboarding there?s a new company with a new idea popping up every day-and you can?t fit all those great ideas on the floor! Education is important-with new products coming in every day it?s critical to make sure all the employees are up to speed and can make strong product recommendations.
What brands do you carry?
We carry a huge assortment of decks, from well known brands like Rayne, Landyachtz, Bustin Boards, Earthwing, Sector 9 and Comet to harder-to-locate boards like Fullbag, Subsonic, Rotule, Drang and Big Myth. Tons of wheels, trucks and components-Abec 11, Seismic, Orangatang, Venom, Metro Motion, Atobe, Paris, Surf-Rodz, Randal, Bear, Independent, Bones, Gullwing, Bennett, Tracker and on and on?
How do you decide what other brands to carry in your store?
We?ve had the good fortune of meeting a lot of great people throughout the industry over the years so when it came time to open a store we looked first to those people who we?d met and respected. Largely they were very supportive of the concept and were excited to have an even bigger presence in the growing New York scene. After that, it was a matter of filling in voids and making sure that we had the correct brands to cover the different needs of our community-which change daily.
How has the store changed and evolved since it opened?
The store changes and evolves every day! There?s a lot of work to be done in addition to selling-we assemble, rebuild and tweak a lot of boards so we?ve had to adjust to make sure everybody leaves feeling that they got exactly what they needed. We learn new lessons every day and try to roll with it.
Do you foresee opening additional retail locations in NYC eventually?
Right now our focus is on making the current location bigger and better. With the way the industry is growing we can?t rule anything out but for now we?ve got our hands full managing what we?ve got.
Source: http://business.transworld.net/72981/features/retail-profile-a-tour-of-manhattans-longboard-loft/
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